Dana Hill

Dana Hill
Born	Dana Lynne Goetz May 6, 1964(1964-05-06) Encino, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Died	July 15, 1996(1996-07-15) (aged 32) Burbank, California, U.S.
Other names	Dana Yolanda Hill Dana Hill-Goetz
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1978–1996

Dana Hill (born Dana Lynne Goetz; May 6, 1964 – July 15, 1996) was an American actress and voice actor with a raspy voice and childlike appearance, which allowed her to play adolescent roles into her 30s. While Hill is maybe best known for playing Audrey Griswold in National Lampoon's European Vacation and Sherry Dunlap in Shoot the Moon, it is probably her best role as Ellie Turner in the semi-auto biographical story of author Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings in the 1983 "Cross Creek" with Mary Steenburgen, Peter Coyote and Rip Torn.

Early health issues

Dana Lynne Goetz was born in 1964 to Sandy Hill and Ted Goetz. Her father was a director of commercials. A diagnosis of Type I diabetes at an early age ended a promising athletic future. A 1982 article in People Magazine reported that at age 10 Hill had placed third nationwide in the 880-yard run and fourth in the mile run. A few weeks later she collapsed on the track, which led to the diagnosis. The diabetes stunted her growth (at 18 she was 5' 0" and 82 pounds) and caused life-long health complications for Hill.^{[citation needed]}

Teen years

Hill's initial work in commercials was via her father's influence (her first job was a 1973 commercial for the YMCA, spinning a basketball on her finger with then-Boston Celtics center Dave Cowens). However, to avoid the appearance of nepotism, she took her mother's maiden name as her stage name and devoted herself to acting as a career. She appeared in guest roles on such programs as Family before landing a major role on the 1981–1982 CBS series The Two Of Us, as Gabrielle "Gabby" Gallagher for the 20-episode run of the series. While filming this series the 17-year-old Hill would sometimes be pulled over by the police while driving to the studio, because she looked too young to drive.^{[citation needed]}

Her breakthrough role was in the 1981 made-for-TV movie Fallen Angel. The 17-year-old Hill played 12-year-old molestation victim Jennifer Phillips, a role which earned her a Young Artist Award in the category Best Young Actress in a Television Special.

Hill later played Sherry Dunlap, the daughter of Albert Finney and Diane Keaton in Shoot the Moon (1982). That same year, she played Frankie Addams, the lead character in the made-for-TV adaptation of The Member of the Wedding, co-starring with Pearl Bailey. In 1983 she starred with Rip Torn and Mary Steenburgen in the film Cross Creek, a semi-biographical story about Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, author of The Yearling. She played a character that was originally as a young boy in Rawlings' book "The Yearling". Her performance was as strong as those of stars Mary Steenburgen, Rip Torn and Peter Coyote. Ms. Hills' performance of a young adult coming into her own in the most rural and wild of America is worth a look. The movie was said on IMDB to have been filmed in Alachua County, Florida. Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park is a Florida State Park and historic site located on the former homestead of Florida author Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. It is located in Cross Creek, Florida, between Ocala and Gainesville at 18700 South County Road 325. The homestead is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, added on September 29, 1970.

She also appeared on a 1983 episode of Magnum, P.I. (entitled "Basket Case").

At age 19 she starred in a 1984 CBS Schoolbreak Special called Welcome Home, Jellybean, playing Geraldine "Jellybean" Oxley, a 12-year-old developmentally disabled girl whose parents decide to take their daughter out of the institution she had been housed in, so she could experience a normal home life. The same year, she appeared in Shelley Duvall's 1980s children's TV series Faerie Tale Theatre, playing The Princess, in an episode called "The Boy Who Left Home to Find Out About the Shivers".

Film roles

In 1985, the producers of the 1983 movie National Lampoon's Vacation were looking to make a sequel, but Anthony Michael Hall declined to reprise his role as son Rusty Griswold, choosing instead to do the film Weird Science. The producers decided to recast the roles of both Griswold children, and so for National Lampoon's European Vacation, Hill was chosen to replace the original actress who portrayed Audrey, Dana Barron.

Hill appeared as Sergeant Andrea Pritchett alongside George Clooney in Combat Academy (also known as Combat High), a 1986 film from the producers of Police Academy. After playing Francy in the 1991 made-for-TV courtroom movie Final Verdict, her final film role was a bit part ("Wife at Motel") in the 1994 baseball movie, Cobb.

Voice actor

Beginning in 1987, she provided the voice for Scrappy, the orphan mouse, on eight episodes of Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures. She also provided the voice of Toots in the Pound Puppies episode, The Bright Eyes Mob. She was Teddy-2 in Jetsons: The Movie (1990); from 1989-1991 she voiced Buddy on the animated children's television show Gummi Bears, and in 1992-1993 was the voice of Max on Goof Troop. Her voice was featured as Jerry Mouse in Tom and Jerry: The Movie, and Charles on Duckman. as well as numerous characters in the Nickelodeon show, Rugrats. She was also a semi-regular panelist on the 1990s version of To Tell the Truth.

Death

Hill slipped into a diabetic coma in May 1996 and suffered a massive paralytic stroke the following month. On July 15, 1996, Hill died, aged 32. She was cremated and her ashes are kept in a private location.

External links

• Dana Hill at the Internet Movie Database
• Dana Hill at Find A Grave